THE BIOGRAPHY OF MAHOMET, AND RISE OF ISLAM.
CHAPTER EIGHTEENTH.

Sixth Year of the Hegira.

-A.D. 627, 628

I. Ętat 59.

Numerous minor expeditions undertaken in the sixth year of the Hegira

THE Sixth year of the Hegira was one of considerable activity at Medina. No important battle indeed was fought, nor any grand expedition undertaken.
But small parties were almost incessantly in motion,
either for the chastisement of hostile tribes, for the
capture of caravans, or for the repulse of robbers
and marauders. We read of as many as sixteen or
seventeen such expeditions during the year. They
generally resulted in the dispersion of the enemy,
and the capture of flocks and herds, which greatly
enriched the followers of Mahomet, and stimulated
their zeal for active service. They also maintained or increased the name and terror of the
new potentate. But few of them were otherwise

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attended with marked results; and it will not there-
fore be necessary to give a narrative of them all 1.

Two of the expeditions were led by Mahomet
himself. One was against the Bani Lahyan, whom
he had long been desirous of chastising for their
treacherous attack, two years before, on the little
band of his followers at Raji.2. In the early part of
the year he set out with a selected body of two
hundred men on camels, and twenty horse.3 That
he might the more surely fall upon his enemy unawares, he first took the road towards Syria. After
two or three marches in that direction, he suddenly
turned south, and travelled rapidly along the seashore by the road to Mecca. But the stratagem
was of no avail, for the Bani Lahyan had notice of
his approach, and taking their cattle with them,
retired to the heights, where they were safe from
attack. At the spot where his followers had been
slaughtered, he halted, and invoked pardon and

1 Weil regards the comparative insignificance or these expeditions, and especially the smallness of Mahomet's following on the
pilgrimage to Hodeibia, as a proof how low his authority had sunk.
I see no grounds whatever for this conclusion. There was no
object to call forth on these occasions any great exertion or any
extensive gathering of his followers. I regard the authority of
Mahomet as continuing steadily and uniformly on the advance,
and as having been greatly increased by his successful resistance
of the grand confederation which laid siege to Medina. The
expedition to Hodeibia was purely for the purpose of pilgrimage.

2 Vol. ii. p.201.

3 Mahomet took only one of every two who volunteered, telling them that both should have the merit of the expedition.

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mercy on them. Small parties were then, for one
or two days, sent to scour the vicinity, but no traces
of the tribe were found in any quarter. Mahomet
being now about two marches only from Mecca,
advanced to Osfan, with the view of alarming the
Coreish. From thence he sent Abu Bakr with ten
horsemen, as it were his vanguard, to approach still
nearer.1 Satisfied with this demonstration, the
force retraced its steps to Medina. On his way
back from this unsuccessful journey, Mahomet, who
had been greatly incommoded by the heat, is said
to have prayed thus : - "Returning and repentant,
yet if it please the Lord, praising His name and
serving Him, I seek Refuge in God from the troubles
of the way, the vexation of return, and the Evil eye
affecting family and wealth."2

Pursuit of Uyeina, who had fallen upon the camels of Mahomet near Medina. 1st Rabi, A.H. VI. July, A.D. 627

Not many days after his return, Medina was,
early one morning, startled by a cry of alarm from
the adjoining height of Sila. Uyeina, chief of the
Bani Fezara, had come down during the night, with
a troop of forty horse, upon the plain of Al Ghaba,
within a few miles of Medina, had fallen upon the
milch camels of Mahomet which were grazing there,
and driven off the whole herd, killing the keeper, and
carrying away his wife a prisoner. A citizen, early

1 He had halted at Ghiran, and thence marched to Osfan, distant five Arabian miles. Abu Bakr went on to Kara al Ghamim, three miles farther on the road to Mecca. Osfan is two ordinary stages from Mecca.

2 Katib al Wackidi, p.114 ½; Hishami, p.308.

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on his way to the pasture lands, saw the marauding
band, and gave the alarm. The call to arms was
ordered by Mahomet. A troop of horse was immediately at the gate of the Mosque. These were
despatched at once in pursuit,----Mahomet himself,
with five or six hundred men following shortly after.
Sad ibn Obada, with three hundred followers, remained behind, to guard the city. The advanced
party hung upon the rear of the marauders, slew
several of them, and recovered half of the plundered
camels. On the side of the Mussulmans only one man
was killed. Mahomet, with the main body, marched
as far as Dzu Carad, in the direction of Kheibar;
but by this time the robbers were safe in the desert
among the Bani Ghatfan. The captive female
effected her escape on one of the plundered camels,
which she vowed, if she reached Medina in safety,
to offer up as a sacrifice of thanksgiving. On
acquainting Mahomet with her vow, he raffled her
on the ingratitude of seeking to slay the animal
which had saved her life, and which moreover was
not hers to offer up. He bade her go to her home
in peace. The force was five days absent from
Medina 1.

1K. Wackidi 115; Hishami 809. The Secretary gives some stirring details connected with this adventure, - especially the narrative by Salma of his pressing, single-handed, on the enemy's rear along the narrow passes and thickets of the road. He and Abu Cotada greatly distinguished themselves.

Scarcity still prevailing in the desert, and rain
having fallen plentifully in the direction of Medina,
the Ghatfan tribes were tempted, in their search
for pasture, to encroach upon the bounds assigned
to them in the treaty with Uyeina.1 The herds of
camels belonging to Medina, greatly increased by
the plunder of late years, had been sent out to graze
in the same vicinity.2 They offered a tempting
prize for a foray, and the neighbouring tribes
were suspected to be gathering for the purpose.
Mohammad ibn Maslama was deputed with ten
followers to ascertain how matters stood.3 At
Dzul Cassa, a place well advanced in the desert,4
he was surrounded in the night-time by over-powering numbers; after a short resistance, all his
men were slain, and he himself, severely wounded,

call; and Mahomet, having mounted the banner on his spear, sent him in advance with the horse; some say that he was the leader of the party, but others give that honour to Sad ibn Zeid, also a citizen. For the curious anecdote connected with this point, see
vol.1. Introd. p. lxxxvi.

1 See above, vol. iii. p.226. The siege of Medina, in which these Bedouins took a prominent part, may perhaps have been regarded as obliterating that treaty, and this is the more likely with reference also to the raid on Al Ghaba.

2 They were sent out to Heifa, seven Arabian miles from Medina.

3 This is not mentioned by tradition as the object of the expedition; but it could have been the only object of so small a party, unless, indeed, it was intended as a deputation, or embassy.

4 Dzul Cassa was twenty-four Arabian miles from MedinaD on the road to Rabadza. Wackidi 116.

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left on the field as dead. An adherent of Mahomet,
happening to pass that way, assisted him on his
journey back to Medina. Immediately a force of forty
well-mounted soldiers was despatched to chastize the
offenders; but these had dispersed among the neighbouring heights, and excepting the plunder of some flocks and household stuff, no reprisals were effected.

During the Autumn of this year, a force of one
hundred and seventy men was despatched toward
Al Is, to intercept, on its return, a rich caravan,
which the Coreish had ventured to despatch by the
route of the seashore to Syria- The attack was completely successful. The whole caravan, including a
large store of silver belonging to Safwan, was plundered, and some of those who guarded it, taken prisoners.

Abul Aas and Zeinab, Mahomet's daughter

Among the prisoners was Abul Aas, son-in-law
of Mahomet. His romantic story deserves recital,
as well for its own interest, as for the share which
the Prophet himself bore therein. The reader will
remember that, at Khadija's desire, Mahomet married his daughter Zeinab to her nephew, Abul Aas,
a prosperous trader in Mecca.1 On the assumption
of the prophetic office by his father-in-law, Abul
Aas declined to embrace Islam. But he listened
with equal unwillingness to the Coreish who bade
him abandon Zeinab, and offered him the choice of
their own daughters in her stead : - "I will not
separate from my wife," he said,-" neither do I

1 See vol ii. pp. 45, 264.

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desire any other woman from amongst your daughters-" Mahomet was much pleased by the faithfulness of Abul Aas to his daughter. The attachment
was mutual, for when Mahomet and the rest of his
family emigrated to Medina, Zeinab remained behind
at Mecca with her husband.

Abul Aas taken prisoner at Badr, is freed on condition of sending Zeinab to Medina

In the battle of Badr, Abul Aas was taken prisoner. When the Coreish deputed men to ransom at their prisoners, Zeinab sent by their hands such
property as she had, for her husband's freedom.
Among other things, was a necklace, which Khadija
had given her, on her marriage with Abul Aas.
When the Prophet saw this touching memorial of
his former wife, he was greatly overcome, and said
to the people : - "If it seem right in your eyes, let
my daughter's husband go free, and send back these
things unto her." All agreed to this. But as a
condition of his freedom, Mahomet required of Abul
Aas that he should send Zeinab to Medina. Accordingly,
on his return to Mecca, Abul Aas, having
made arrangements for her departure, sent her away
mounted on a camel-litter, under the charge of his
brother Kinana. Some of the baser sort from
amongst the Coreish, hearing of her departure; went
in pursuit, determined to bring her back. The
first that appeared was Habbar, who struck the
camel with his spear, and so affrighted Zeinab, as to
cause her a miscarriage. Kinana at once made the
camel sit down and, by the mere sight of his bow
and well-filled quiver, kept the pursuers at bay,

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Just then Abu Sofian came up and held a parley
with Kinana: - "Ye should not;" he said, "have
gone forth thus publicly,---- knowing the disaster we
have so lately sustained at the hands of Mahomet.
The open departure of his daughter will be accounted
a proof of our weakness and humiliation. But it is
no object of ours to keep back this woman from her
father, or to retaliate our wrongs on her. Return,
then, for a little while to Mecca, and when this excitement shall have died away, then set out secretly."
They followed his advice: and some days after,
Zeinab, escorted by Zeid ibn Harith, who had been
sent to meet her, reached Mahomet in safety.

Conversion of Abul Aas. A.H. VI.

It was between three and four years after this that
Abul Aas, as above related, was again made prisoner
at Al Is. As the party approached Medina, he
contrived by night to have an interview with Zeinab,
who granted the protection which he sought. He
then rejoined the other prisoners. In the morning,
the people being assembled for prayers in the
Mosque, Zeinab called out in a loud voice from her
apartment, that she had given to Abul Aas her
guarantee of protection. When the prayers were
ended, Mahomet thus addressed the assembly
"Ye have heard, as I have, the words of my
daughter. I swear by Him in whose hands is my
life, that I knew nothing of her guarantee until this
moment. But the pledge of even the least of my followers must be respected." Thus saying, he retired
to his daughter, and desired her to treat Abul Aas

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with honour, as a guest, but not to recognize him
as her husband. Then he sent for the captors of
the caravan, and reminding them of his close connexion with Abul Aas, said,- "If ye treat him
well, and return his property unto him, it would
be pleasing to me; but if not, the booty is yours,
which the Lord hath given into your hands, and
it is your right to keep the same." They all with
one consent agreed to let the prisoner go free, and
to return the whole of his property. This generosity, and the continued attachment of Zeinab,
so wrought upon Abul Aas, that, when he had
adjusted his affairs at Mecca, he made profession
of Islam, and joined his wife at Medina. Their
domestic happiness, thus renewed, was not of long
continuance; for Zeinab died the following year
from disease, said to have originated in the miscarriage caused by the attack of Habbar at Mecca.

Mahomet commands that the two Coreish who pursued his daughter be put to death if caught

The treatment of his daughter on that occasion,
and especially the unmanly and barbarous conduct
of Habbar, greatly incensed Mahomet. Once, when
a party was setting out on an expedition towards
Mecca, he commanded that if Habbar, or the
comrade who joined him ii the pursuit 1 of Zeinab,
fell into their hands, they should both -be burned

1 The name of this second person is not given, but it may
possibly have been Huweirith, who was killed by Ali on the capture of Mecca, for having, as is alleged, made an attack on Fatima and Omm Kolthum when they were leaving Mecca. Hishami 363. I do not find any other evidence of an attack on Fatima and
Omm Kolthum, which, had it actually occurred, would have been

page 10

alive. But during the night he reconsidered the
order, and sent it to countermand it in these words
"It is not fitting for any to punish by fire but God
only; wherefore if ye find the culprits, put them to
death in the ordinary way."1

The Bani Judzam chastised for robbing Dihya, who had been sent by Mahomet on an embassy to Syria. 2nd Jumad, AH. VI October 9 A.D.627.

The following incidents are connected with the
first communication held by Mahomet with the
Roman Empire. Dihya, one of his followers, was
sent on a mission to the Emperor, or perhaps to
one of the Governors of Syria.2 He was graciously
received, and presented with a dress of honour.
On his way home, he was plundered of everything
at Hisma, beyond Wadi al Cora, by the Bani Judzam. A neighbouring tribe, however, to whom
Dihya at once complained, attacked the robbers,
recovered the spoil, and restored it to him uninjured.
On the robbery reaching the ears of Mahomet, he
despatched Zeid with five hundred men, to chastize

1 plentifully spoken off. I conclude that the present was really the attack in which Huweirith was engaged; and that as Ali was
his executioner, tradition consequently represents Ali's wife
Fatima, instead of Zeinab, as the object of that ruffian's attack.

1Hishami 234; K. Wackidi, 116 ½. It is satisfactory to find that at Mecca, the cruelty of Habbar was scouted as unmanly.
Even Hind, wife of Abu Sofian, gave vent to her indignation at
it. Meeting the party as it returned, she extemporized some
severe verses against them :---- "Ah! in time of peace ye are very
brave and fierce against the weak and unprotected, but in the
battle ye are like women with gentle speeches," &c.

2 The nature of the mission is not stated by the Secretary.
M. C. de Perceval says that it was to demand from the Emperor,
in the name of Mahomet, liberty of commerce with the Roman
Provinces. Vol iii. p.157.

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the delinquents.1 Marching by night, and concealing themselves by day, they fell unexpectedly on
the Bani Judzam, killed several of them, including
their chief and carried off a hundred of their
women and children, with a great collection of
herds and flocks. Another chief of the same tribe,
who had previously tendered his submission to
Mahomet, hastened to Medina, and appealed against
these proceedings. He produced the letter of terms
which Mahomet had made with his tribe, and demanded justice.- "But," said Mahomet, "how can
I compensate thee for those that have been slain?"
"Release to us the living," was the chief's reply;-
"as for the dead, they are beneath our feet." Mahomet acknowleged the justice of the demand, and
despatched Ali to order restoration. He met Zeid
on his way back to Medina, and the prisoners and
booty were immediately surrendered to the chief.

Second expedition to Duma. Shaban, A.H. V. November, 627

Soon after, Abd al Rahtnan set out with seven
hundred men, on a second expedition to
Jandal. Mahomet bound a black turban in token
of command, about his bead. He was to endeavour
first to gain over the people of Duma, and
to fight only-in the last resort :- "but in no case,"
continued the Prophet, "shalt thou use deceit or
perfidy, nor shalt thou kill any child" On reaching Duma, he summoned the tribes to embrace

1 Zeid ibn Harith commanded five or six of the expeditions
undertaken this year.

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Islam, and allowed them three days' grace. Within
that period, Al Asbagh, a Christian chief of the
Bani Kalb, gave in his adhesion, and many followed
his example. Others preferred to be tributaries,
with the condition of being allowed to maintain
the profession of Christianity. Abd al Rahman
communicated these tidings by a messenger to
Mahomet, who, in reply, desired him to marry
Tamadhir, daughter of the chief. Abd al Rahman
accordingly brought this lady with him to Medina,
where she bore him Abu Salma (the famous
jurisconsult of after days), and amid many rivals,
maintained her position as one of his wives, till her
husband's death.1

After several warlike raids of inferior importance, Zeid ibn Harith set out upon a mercantile
expedition to Syria, carrying with him ventures,
for barter there, from many of the citizens. The
caravan was waylaid near Wadi al Cora, seven
marches from Medina, and plundered by the Bani
Fezara. This occasioned much exasperation at
Medina. When Zeid was sufficiently recovered
from the injuries inflicted by the robbers, he was
sent forth with a strong force to execute vengeance

1K. Wackidi, 117,2084. For some account of Abd al Rahmans conjugal relations, see vol ii. pp. 272, 278. Besides concubines,
he had issue by sixteen wives, and may have married many others
who bore him no children. As be could have no more than
four wives at a time, the frequent changes and divorces may be
imagined.

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upon them. He approached stealthily, and effecting
a complete surprise, captured the marauders' stronghold.

Barbarous execution of Omm Kirfa

Omm Kirfa, aunt of Uyeina, who had gained
celebrity as the mistress of this nest of robbers, was
taken prisoner with her daughter. Neither the sex,
nor the great age of Omm Kirfa, saved her from a
death of extreme barbarity. Her legs were tied each
to a separate camel. The camels were driven in
different directions, and thus she was torn in sunder.
Two young brothers of the same family were also
put to death. Zeid, on his return, hastened to
visit Mahomet, who, eager to learn the intelligence,
came forth to meet him with his dress ungirded;
and learning the success of the expedition, embraced
and kissed him. We read of no disapprobation
expressed by the Prophet at the inhuman treatment
of Omm Kirfa, and are therefore warranted in holding
him to be an accomplice in the ferocious act. The
daughter was given as a slave to Mahomet, who
presented her to one of his followers.1

Assassination of Abul Huckeick (Abu Rafi) a Jewish chief

His old enemies, the Jews, were still the cause
of annoyance to Mahomet. A party of the Bani
Nadhir, with their chief, Abul Huckeick, after being

1K. Wackidi 117. Omm Kirfa was grand--daughter of Badr, a patriarch of the tribe, and had married her cousin Malk, uncle
of Uyeina. They formed a branch of the Fezara, which again
belonged to the Bani Dzobian, a tribe of the Bani Ghatifan,
vol i. p. ccxxiv. table. Hisn, the father, of Uyeina, was a
leader in the battle of Jabala. Ibid. p. ccxxvi. The person who put
Omm Kirfa to death was Cays ibn al Mohsin, a name I am not
familiar with.

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Ramadhan, A.H. VI. December, A.D. 627

expelled from Medina, had settled among their
brethren at Kheibar. Abul Huckeick (called also
Sallam and Abu Rifi) had taken a prominent part
among the confederates who besieged Medina, and
he was now suspected of inciting the Bani Fezara
and other Bedouin tribes in their depredations.
An expedition was undertaken by Ali, with one
hundred men, against a combination of the Bani
Sad ibn Bakr, said to have been concocted with
the Jews of Kheibar; but besides a rich booty
of camels and flocks, it produced no other result.1
As a surer means of putting a stop to these machinations, Mahomet resolved on ridding himself of
their supposed author, the Jewish chief. The Bani
Khazraj, emulous of the distinction which the Bani
Aws gained some years before, by the assassination
of Kab, had long declared themselves ready to perform a similar service. Mahomet therefore chose five
men from amongst that tribe, and gave them command to make away with Abul Huckeick. On
approaching Kheibar, they concealed themselves
till nightfall when they repaired to the house of
their victim. Abdallah ibn Atik, the leader of
the party, who was familiar with the Bani Nadhir,
and spoke their language fluently, addressed the wife

1 This expedition occurred in Shaban (November), i.e. a month before the assassination of Abul Huckeick K.Wackidi, 117.
Ali advanced as far as Hamaj between Kheibar and Fadak. The
Bani Sad, a branch of the Hawazin, were among the confederates who besieged Medina.

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of the chief, who came at his summons to the door,
and gained admittance on a false pretext.1 When
she perceived that the men were armed, she screamed
aloud, but they pointed their weapons at her, and
forced her to be silent at the peril of her life. Then
they rushed into the inner chamber, and despatched
Abul Huckeick with their swords. They hastily
withdrew, and hid themselves in some adjacent caves
till the pursuit was over. Then they returned to
Medina. When Mahomet saw them approaching,
he exclaimed, "Success attend you!" ---- "And thee,
O Prophet!" they replied. They recounted to him
all that had happened; and as each one claimed the
honour of the deed, Mahomet examined their weapons,
and from the marks on the sword of Abdallah ibn
Oneis, assigned to him the merit of the fatal blow.2

Oseir ibn Zarim and a party of Jews slain

The assassination of Abul Huckeick did not relieve Mahomet of his apprehensions from the Jews

1 According to one account, he pretended he had brought a
present for her husband; according to another that be had come
to traffic with him in corn.

2 It is the same Abdallah ibn Oneis who had assassinated
Sofian. See above, vol. iii. p.200.

I have chiefly followed the secretary of Wackidi, p.117 ½.
There are variations in Hishami, p.306; and Tabari; p.342, et
seq.; but none which diminish the share taken by Mahomet in
the foul deed. The variations are chiefly caused by the eager
ness of each member of the party, and their respective friends
to magnify the part taken by them in the assassination.
One account relates that Abdallah ibn Atik, in hastening from
the victim's house, fell over the stair and had his leg broken,
which Mahomet, touching, miraculously cured.

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Shawwal, A.H. VI. January, A.D. 628.

of Kheibar; for Oseir iba Zarim, elected chief in his
room, maintained the same relations with the Bani
Ghatafan, and was reported to be designing fresh
movements against Medina. Mahomet deputed
Abdallah ibn Rawaha, a leader of the Bani Khazraj,
to Kheibar, with three followers, to make inquiries
as to how Oseir also might be taken unawares. But
Abdallah found the Jews too much on the alert to
admit of a second successful attempt at assassination.
On his return, therefore, a new stratagem was devised.
Abdallah ibn Rawaha, was sent openly with thirty
men mounted on camels, to persuade Oseir to visit
Medina. They assured him that Mahomet would make
him ruler over Kheibar, and would treat him with
great distinction; and they gave him a solemn guarantee of safety. Oseir consented, and set out with
thirty followers, each Moslem taking one behind
him on his camel. The unfortunate chief was
mounted on the camel of Abdallab ibn Oneis, who
relates that, after they had travelled some distance,
he perceived Oseir stretching forth his hand towards
his sword. Urging forward his camel till he was
well beyond the rest of the party, Abdallah called out,
"Enemy of the Lord! Treachery! Twice hath he
done this thing." As he spoke, he leaped from the
camel, and aimed a deadly blow at Oseir, which
took effect on the hip joint. The chief fell mortally
wounded from the camel; but in his descent he succeeded in wounding Abdallah's head, with the camel staff; the only weapon within his reach. At this

page 17

signal, each of the Mussulmans turned upon the
man behind him, and the Jews were all murdered,
excepting one who eluded pursuit. The party continued their journey to Medina, and reported the
tragedy to Mahomet, who gave thanks and said, -
Verily, the Lord hath delivered you from an Unrighteous People."

By treachery

The reader will not fail to have remarked that
we have the evidence only of the practised assassin,
Abdallah ibn Oneis, for the treachery of Oseir.
This man knew that Abdallah ibn Rawaha had
already been despatched on a secret errand with the
view of getting rid of the Jewish Chief; and from
his previous history, it is too evident that he
scrupled little as to the means employed for taking
the life of any one proscribed by the Prophet.
Abdallah alleges that Oseir suddenly repented of
his determination to go to Medina, and meditated
treachery. On which side the treachery lay may be
gathered from the result. Oseir was unarmed, and
so apparently were all his followers: for excepting
the wound inflicted with the camel-staff upon Abdallah, no injury was sustained by any of the Moslems. The probabilities are entirely opposed to the
charge of Abdallah; and even supposing the suspicions against Oseir well-founded, they will hardly
be viewed as a sufficient justification of the cold-
blooded massacre of his unoffending companions.2

1 K. Wackidi 117 ½.

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Certain Urnee robbers executed barabrously, for plunder and murder

A party of eight Bedouin Arabs 1 had some time
previously come to Medina and embraced Islam.
The damp of the climate disagreed with them, and
they pined away from disease of the spleen. Mahomet bade them, for a cure, to join themselves to
one of his herds of milch camels, which grazed in
the plain south of Cuba, under the hill of Ayr,2
and drink of their milk.3 Following his advice
they soon recovered; but with returning strength,
there revived also the innate love of plunder. They
drove off the camels, and attempted to escape with
them. The herdsman, joined by a few others, pursued the plunderers, but was repulsed and barbarously handled; for they cut off his hands and
legs, and stuck thorny spikes into his tongue and eyes,
till he died.4 When tidings of this outrage reached
Mahomet, he despatched twenty horsemen in pursuit.5 They surrounded and seized the robbers,

1 Of the Urnee tribe. H. V. Kremer has mistaken the name
for that of a place. Campaigns of Wackidi, notes, p.4.

2 The place called Dzul Jidr was six Arabian miles from
Medina. Mahomet had many herds which were sent to graze
wherever then was good pasture. This one consisted of fifteen
camels.

3 And it is added, their urine also.

4 His name was Yasar. He was a slave captured in the
war of the Bani Muharib and Thalaba, and had been freed by
Mahomet The cruelties of the Bedouins are possibly exaggerated
to justify the barbarity of Mahomet.

5 They were commanded by Kurz ibn al Jabir, whom we
have seen above (vol. iii. p. 68,) as engaged in one of the first
raids against Medina. At what period he was converted and
came to Medina is not mentioned.

page 19

Mutilation recognized as a legal punishment

and recovered all the camels but one, which had
been slaughtered and eaten. The captives were
conducted to Mahomet, who was justly exasperated
at their ingratitude, and at their savage treatment of
his servant. They had merited death; but the
mode in which he inflicted it was barbarous and
inhuman. The arms and legs of the eight men were
cut off; and their eyes put out. The shapeless, sightless,
trunks of these wretched Bedouins were then impaled
upon the plain of Al Ghaba, until life was extinct.1

On reflection, Mahomet appears to have felt
that this punishment exceeded the bounds of
humanity. He accordingly promulgated a Revelation, in which capital punishment is limited to
simple death or crucifixion. Amputation of the
hands and feet is, however, sanctioned as a penal
measure; and amputation of the hands is even
enjoined as the proper penalty for that, whether
the criminal be male or female. This barbarous
custom has accordingly been perpetuated through
out the Mahometan world. But the putting out of
the eyes is not recognized among the legal punishments. The following is the passage referred to:----

"Verily the recompence of those that fight against God and his
Prophet, and haste to commit wickedness in the land, that

1 What Mahomet was doing then at Ghaba is not quite certain.
According to Hishami, he was on his way home from Dzu Carad,
which would make the transaction six or seven months earlier.
The place is also called "Al Roaba, at the meeting of the
waters," i.e. near Ohod. Qy. Al Zaghaba, which is another name for Al
Ghaba Burckhardt, p. 328 K. Wackidi, 118; Hishami, 454.

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they shall be slain or crucified; or that their hands and feet of
the opposite sides be cut off: or that they be banished from the
land. That shall be their punishment in this Life, and in the Life to
come they shall have great torment.

"As regards the Robber, and the Female robber, cut off the
hands of both."1

Attempt, under the orders of Mahomet, to assassinate Abu Sofian

The Secretary of Wackidi assigns to this period 2
an attempt made, under the orders of Mahomet, to
assassinate Abu Sofian. As its cause, he states that
a Bedouin Arab had been sent by Abu Sofian to
Medina, on a similar errand against Mahomet; but
that the emissary was discovered, and confessed the
object of his mission. According to Hishami (who
makes no mention of this latter; circumstance), the
attempted assassination was ordered by Mahomet
in the fourth year of the Hegira, in immediate
revenge for the execution of the two captives taken

1 Sura, v. 39,44. For repeated robberies, a second, third, and
fourth hand and foot may be cut off rendering the criminal a
helpless, shapeless, cripple.

2K. Wackidi, p.118. He makes the attempt to assassinate
Abu Sofian follow the affair of the Urnee robbers, but without
specifying the month. It may have occurred in Sbawwal, or
January, 628. It does not appear in the list of expeditions
which prefaces Wackidi's campaigns. Our authorities are quite
consistent as to the deputation of Amr, its object, and Mahomet's
authority. There is just a shadow of possibility that the tradition may have been fabricated by the anti-Omeyad party to
throw odium on the memory of Abu Sofian, as having been
deemed by Mahomet worthy of death. But this is not to be put
against the evidence of unanimous and apparently independent
traditions.

page 21

at Raji.1 Whatever the inciting cause, there is
no reasonable doubt that a commission was given
by the Prophet to Amr ibn Omeya, a practised
assassin,2 to proceed to Mecca, and murder his
opponent Abu Sofian. Amr was recognized, as he
lurked near the Kaaba, before he could carry his
design into effect, and he was obliged to flee for his
life. True, however, to his profession, he claims
the credit of having assassinated three of the Coreish
by the way, and a fourth he brought prisoner to
Medina.

1Hishami, p.451. To confirm this, Hishami adds that Amr passed by the spot or the execution, and saw men guarding the
corpse of Khobeib the martyr.

2 He is the name who, escaping from the massacre at Bir
Mauna, assassinated the two travellers for whom Mahomet paid
compensation. Vol. iii. p.208. He is stated by the secretary to
have been before Islam a professional assassin, , p. 118, and
marginal note; so that the people of Mecca, in recognizing him,
immediately understood what his errand was.